Darkside GTI 2001 Sport Build Thread

DarkSideGTI said:
Thanks, but it's more the glass than it is the body. Put your money into nice fast glass and your proto's will improve drastically. the only reason I upgraded from the D70 to D7000 was for better high ISO performance.

I just checked out your thread, how are your LED dash lights holding up? I was thinking about going the red/white route as well.
Click to expand...

I agree, quality glass is key. I already have some pretty good "L" glass, it's definitely time for a new body though. Like yourself I want something with better high ISO performance - stepping into a full frame shortly.

My LED's are good, a couple started blinking but I ordered spares and have replaced them. They have been working perfect now for the past 6 months. The color scheme is awesome, wouldnt change it if I did it again....

RE tire/lift setup: You should be able to fit a 265 without a lift - I ran 265 BFG KM2's on stock height before my first lift setup. It will have a lot to do with your backspacing on the wheels you choose too. You may need to trim the pinch weld down a little knowing the newer 3rd gen's (2000+) sat lower from factory.

I'm running TRD Tundra coils and Tundra Bilsteins with the 5 adjustment perches. Running Tundra 5100's in the rear with LC 8 wraps. IMO it's an excellent setup without going to Icons or something pricey. Rides amazing and awesome for wheeling. I'm guessing though, you wont want as much lift if your sticking with 265's??.... But you can put the front Tundras on the lowest or 2nd perch and have 1.75-2.5" of lift. Then go with an OME coils in the rear. Then you have the option of going higher later if you wanted to. Oh, I pieced my lift together myself....
 
I have decided to do a 3" lift. Is a 16x8" et 10 wheel going to give me problems with a 265/75/16? Would I need to space it out?
 
I have no experience running that exact offset/backspacing however my old setup was 16x8 ET "0" or 4.5" BS and it worked perfect without a lift. I would guess the higher offset on your wheels will put you closer to the stock Toyota backspacing (not exactly sure what your stock wheels are??). My bet is your not going to have any issues at all. What wheels are you going to run?
 
Well the lift has been ordered. I pieced it together from a few sources. It consists of:

Front:
Bilstein 5100 Tundra adjustable struts
OEM Toyota Tundra TRD coils
New bushings

Rear:
Bilstein 5125 shocks
OME 890 coils

Other:
Front Diff Drop

I was iffy on the panhard bar drop, some say you need it some say for a 3" lift you don't. I am going to hold off for now and see how it drives without.
 
I like your VW! And you take some amazing pics.

I run 265/75s on 16x8" wheels, but my backspace is 4.5" so I guess I can't help you there....I think the backspace you mentioned (4.9") is more than what the toyota factories are at. I have read they are in the 4.6-4.7" range, but no promises there. Rubbing the UCA could be an issue if you go with those wheel specs, especially if you ever step up to 285s...

And nice on the lift!
 
You would need to run spacers with that wheel at 4.9" backspacing. If not, you'll rub the UCA at least, if not other parts. The sweet spot on our wheels is 4.25"-4.5". I run a 4.5" wheel and don't rub at all. I actually have more clearance on the UCA than I did with stock wheels.
 
yeah I figured I would need spacers. My buddy just bought the same wheels for his Tundra after I showed them to him so it looks like I won't be getting them anymore.

I am still going back and forth on the 265 vs 285's. I see pics of Hepar's car and it looks good with 265's.
DSC_4245.jpg~original


But then I have seen others where the tires look too small. Maybe it's just the pics...
39000d1296948888-i-only-wanted-ski-rig-my-build-thread-pc180958.jpg~original


Those trucks have the same wheel/tire setup and I believe both have 3" lifts.
 
If you're on the fence, go 285s. I eventually went up after going to a 3" lift. At least with the 285s you won't look at it, and wonder if they're too small!
 
Millerad1651 said:
If you're on the fence, go 285s. I eventually went up after going to a 3" lift. At least with the 285s you won't look at it, and wonder if they're too small!
Click to expand...

Yeah that's what I have been thinking. Aren't Duratrac's only available in the E load rating in 285's? I heard those don't ride as good. Maybe I need to look into BF Goodrich A/T's or some Falken Rocky Mountain's.
 
I had some MTs in E load and hated them...too rough and loud. I've got the Falkens in a D load and love them. Quiet, handle well, give some cushion over bumps, and are plenty strong enough for off-road.
 
The new stereo setup was lacking some bass so I picked this little guy up from Best Buy yesterday and threw it in. It fits perfectly under my seat and provides more than enough bass for my tastes. You can't even hear it outside of the car which I like.

kicker-hideaway.jpg
 
I tackled the lift install yesterday. The fronts went in pretty easily minus the front sway bar end links breaking when trying to remove them. Also the springs were very hard to compress using the autozone compressors. The rear was more of a PITA. The drivers side shock came out easily, but getting the Bilstein in there was difficult. I got the nut on the bolt but could not tighten it all the way. The only 24mm socket I had was not deep enough so I left it a bit loose and picked up a deep 24mm socket today. On the passenger side the upper shock nut did not want to come off, so I had to try to break the shock shaft. After wiggling it around a bit the nut actually broke loose and I was able to loosen it by hand. Then when I was putting the lock nut on the new shock the nylon portion came out of the top of the nut as I tightened it. I decided to throw some loctite on it and was able to get it tight. I will check it in a bit to make sure it is still tight. Tonight I picked up some new sway bar end links for the front.

On to the pics.


Front Strut by DarksideGTI, on Flickr


Out with the old by DarksideGTI, on Flickr


In with the new by DarksideGTI, on Flickr


Front done by DarksideGTI, on Flickr


Rear done by DarksideGTI, on Flickr


Rear done 2 by DarksideGTI, on Flickr


Done 1 by DarksideGTI, on Flickr


Done 2 by DarksideGTI, on Flickr


Done 3 by DarksideGTI, on Flickr
 
The clunking in the rear is starting to drive me nuts, I want the suspension to be solid. What are people doing about the upper shock mounts in the rear? It seems you would want to use some kind of bushing, but my shocks did not come with any.

I am also hearing a slight 'clunk' in the front, how is everyone torquing the strut nut? You can't use a torque wrench as the center section spins. I thought about doing what I did on my VW and that is taking a tall socket and cutting a window in the side of it with my grinder so I can get a wrench on the tip of the strut.
 
So your getting a clunk in the front and the rear?

You don't have upper shock bushings installed in the rear, is that correct?

I have a very similar suspension setup and have ZERO clunks front or rear. I'm not sure where your going wrong. When does the front clunk? If it's while going over large bumper, you may be getting contact between your steering spindle and your coils.

Give us some more description of your issues and hopefully we can help you get the problems resolved.
 
rickashay said:
So your getting a clunk in the front and the rear?

You don't have upper shock bushings installed in the rear, is that correct?

I have a very similar suspension setup and have ZERO clunks front or rear. I'm not sure where your going wrong. When does the front clunk? If it's while going over large bumper, you may be getting contact between your steering spindle and your coils.

Give us some more description of your issues and hopefully we can help you get the problems resolved.
Click to expand...

The front seems to only happen over large bumps. The rear I can hear if I push up and down on the rear bumper. I'm sure it is the upper mounts moving around a bit. I got them pretty tight, but it's not as if you can get a torque wrench up in there.

The rear mounts look just like this with no bushings.
F9345092.jpg
 
I'd check for marks on your coils to see if they are making steering spindle contact up front. Check out Dirtco or BigFishAllDay's build threads for discussion of them having that same issue.

For the rear, I don't run those adapter pieces so I can't say exactly. Is the upper stud bolt snugged down far enough that it is keeping that adapter piece in one place in the shock mount bucket? I know it's a PITA to get up there to tighten them. I used two regular nuts instead of the nylock style nut because they ended up turning the shock shaft when I tried to tighten them down far enough. I also just used a ratcheting wrench instead of a socket and had better results.

I think if your control arms are that loose, that you can hear them by pushing on your bumper, you should be able to go under there and feel the "play" by hand. Then, you may have identified the problem. It just sounds like a shock issue to me.... Hope some of that helps.

GL!
 
I see you're from Salt Lake- good to see another person from UT on here. Love the VW- I've seen it around a couple of times.
 
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